New Delhi: Leaders cutting across party lines have come together against the “arbitrary” decision of the Lakshadweep administrator Praful K Patel and decided to lodge a formal complaint with President Ram Nath Kovind.
“In light of the mis-administration of the Union Territory of Lakshadweep under the current administrator Praful K Patel, I call upon all opposition parties to unite and present a joint representation to the President calling for the revocation of the anti-people policies and recall of the present administrator,” said senior CPI leader and Rajya Sabha MP Binoy Viswam to ETV Bharat.
He said that due to the non-functioning of all parliamentary proceedings, such representations are the only mechanisms left for Parliamentarians to voice their concerns to the Government.
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“Under the current administration, the UT of Lakshadweep has seen a series of administrative decisions and policy changes that go directly against the interests of the people of Lakshadweep. These decisions range from the prohibition of people with more than two children to contest panchayat elections, the arbitrary termination of numerous employees and contract workers employed by the administration to the introduction of the Goonda Act in the UT, the prohibition of beef and the allowance of alcohol. These decisions, amongst others, are patently undemocratic and have caused great distress to the people of Lakshadweep,” he said.
The draft Lakshadweep Development Authority Regulation 2021 is a proposed regulation to provide for the development of towns in Lakshadweep. The Regulation provides several provisions for the development of townships, acquisition, alteration, and transfer of the landed properties owned by the residents of Lakshadweep. Further, it proposes to impose restrictions on the use of landed properties in Lakshadweep.
In fact, the new regulations have raised the eyebrows of several other leaders. Congress MP and chairman of a Parliamentary Committee on Home Affairs Anand Sharma has also written a letter to Home Minister Amit Shah in this connection.
Interestingly, the Parliamentary committee in its-231 report tabled in Rajya Sabha in March has also suggested to the Home Ministry to hold periodic meetings on development of Lakshadweep as it is a highly eco-sensitive region.
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“The MHA may take up matters of structured planning and overall economic development with the UT Administration, concerned agencies including the Ministry of Shipping, Member of Parliament of the UT and other elected representatives. This will also help in finding a way forward and amicable solution to the developmental problems of the UT. The Committee further recommends that additional funds may be sought from the Ministry for Finance at RE stage to carry out the developmental projects of the UT of Lakshadweep,” the committee said in its report.
Regarding the issue of fisheries in Lakshadweep, the Committee observes that the fishing potential of Lakshdweep is not being harnessed properly.
“The fishermen are not catching enough fish due to lack of infrastructure like small crafts, ice plants, cold storage, processing units, etc. to catch, preserve and process fishes before they are sold in the market. The Committee is of the view that proper storage and processing units will give fishermen the confidence that if the catch is not sold, at least it can be preserved, and can be sold in the market the next day,” the committee said in its report.
The Committee recommends that investments should be made for creation of basic infrastructure to boost the fishing industry in the UT to provide income security to the fishermen. The Committee is of the view that inland fisheries too have vast scope for the development of the fisheries sector in the UT. The Committee, therefore, recommends to utilize the available inland resources like ponds, swamps and low-lying rain fed areas, for fresh water fish farming through mariculture, cage culture and seaweed culture The Committee also recommends to increase budgetary allocation to develop fishery industry in the UT.
However, the decision of the incumbent administrator has also irked the parliamentarians.
“The administration has also made decisions that affect a major source of livelihood, fishing, as it has demolished storage spaces for fishing material and equipment that were earlier created by the previous administration. This has meant that thousands of fisherpersons have lost the ability to productively engage in fishing and are unable to support themselves and their families,” said Viswam.
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